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Warning: Extremely long post. You might as well grab your morning coffee and get comfortable in your work chair if you want to read it.
Today is the start of the 2013-2014 Tennessee Basketball season! It's been an incredibly long offseason, but that is the past. However, I feel like this is a good time to evaluate the program overall before our first game.
In order to evaluate a coach, you must start with what he took over. What kind of position was the program in? Then you evaluate what he has done. Tennessee just had its best six year run since the late 1970's under Bruce Pearl, but that sadly all came crashing down thanks to an NCAA investigation. Bruce was fired for lying to the NCAA. When you have a program under serious investigation, an athletic department hamstrung financially, and an AD that was on the hot seat, it is not a good time to find a basketball coach. Cuonzo Martin was hired as a high risk/high reward coach. He had good success at Missouri State, but had not made the NCAA Tournament and only been a head coach for three years. He had a month to recruit and to make the job even harder, he lost four starters and over 80% of his scoring going into 2011-2012. He had positives with the excellent renovations to TBA, a rejuvenated fan base, a great facility in Pratt Pavilion, and a national brand. But this was an uphill job from the beginning.
I felt like Coach Martin's first year was a success. With the signing of Memphis five star PF/C in Jarnell Stokes, and winning 19 games, which was the same amount the previous year while having to replace four starters, Cuonzo had a lot of momentum. The improvements of Trae Golden, Jeronne Maymon, and Jordan McRae, along with freshmen Jarnell Stokes and Josh Richardson, showed a coach who was really putting his stamp on the program. Tennessee was predicted to finish 11th out of 12 teams in the SEC. They ended up finishing tied 2nd in the conference. They rebounded from a 3-6 start to win 18 regular season games. The Vols fell short of the tournament thanks to a bad out of conference performance, but overall 19 wins was a very solid season. Things were looking bright on Rocky Top. It was almost a guarantee Cuonzo Martin was going to keep the tradition of successful Tennessee basketball.
Then Jeronne Maymon's knee stopped functioning properly. We don't know how or what, but it the best way to describe was a torpedo that hit the ship without it even setting sail yet, and not having a backup boat. Luckily, Jeronne is now 100% healthy and will play this season, but it was definitely a disaster. Tennessee would have made the tournament last year with a healthy Jeronne Maymon. Yet they still had a good amount of talent to make the tournament and didn't. Again, they had a great February to get back on the bubble in the tournament, but a horrible January with bad losses and absolute crap games at Georgia and Alabama in the SEC Tournament games were too much to overcome. The offense was stale, the defense was inconsistent, starting PG Trae Golden was injured and lost confidence, and Tennessee just could not guard well enough to win games. It was a disappointing season overall. We can argue that Tennessee should have been in the tournament all we want. However, they didn't get the job done, then was embarrassed at Thompson-Boling Arena in the NIT.
As a coach, Martin has had his positives. He does a very solid job prepping for big games. He's beaten Florida three times, beat Jim Calhoun, battled Coach K well, and took down John Calipari. He's shown great defensive game plans in multiple facets. He seems to be able to adjust during the game and has done well in conference play. His teams have had great February's. Cuonzo has beaten every coach in the SEC in only two years. His teams are excellent rebounding teams, maybe the best in the conference the last two years. He's done very well with player development also, with such players as Jordan McRae, Jeronne Maymon, and Josh Richardson There are negatives too however. His teams are very inconsistent on offense, especially in the half court. The offense has had too many lazy performances. He seemed to be too stubborn to play a half court game despite having athletes that can run. His defensive teams are not aggressive enough that they create turnovers and they have never protected the ball well. While he's had solid recruiting classes, he's only had two five star signees and not have that big top 15 class that would be really big for the program.
But as we said, that's the past. Cuonzo Martin not only has his most talented team, but his most experienced team going into 2013-2014. They are hungry to make their mark on the program. Cuonzo has changed his philosophy some this year, deciding to install a faster tempo for this team. The defense, which Cuonzo prides himself on, was disappointing last year and Cuonzo feels that there will be better consistency with such a veteran team. He returns four starters, plus brings in a new point guard, Antonio Barton, a senior transfer from The University of Memphis. He brought in his second five star player in Robert Hubbs III, who looks like he will be a dynamite player at Tennessee. His 2014 recruiting class lacks that big time player, but all four commitments are solid recruits with major conference scholarships across the country. It's possible Cuonzo Martin will have two players drafted after the 2014 season in Jarnell Stokes and Jordan McRae, which would be a huge lift for Tennessee's recruiting efforts. Despite not making the tournament for two years after six straight years of being in the Big Dance, the program looks good. Tennessee is in great shape to do big damage this season and should make the tournament with no problems. This is no bubble team. Most pundits have this team as a top 20-25 team for the season and I agree.
When you talk about the state of the program, you must address the future also. The 2013-2014 Tennessee team looks really good. I'm not sure you can debate that with the talent and experience of this team. We do not know the state of the program for the future. There is a lot of questions. Yes the 2013 class looks good on paper and even in their short exhibition games. Yes, every commit of the 2014 class has major conference offers and should be able to contribute from day one. Tennessee will lose three starters, and most likely lose their best player in Jarnell Stokes after the season. Tennessee will have seven freshmen and sophomores for 2014-2015. Tennessee will only have one top 50 former recruit on its roster for 2014-2015. This is where we will truly see if Cuonzo Martin is the answer for the program. I personally like what he has done with the 2013 and 2014 Tennessee recruiting classes. Yet, I have not seen them play one regular season minute. Can Cuonzo Martin develop his young players quickly enough to make back to back tourneys? It's the biggest question around the program in my mind. Making back to back tournaments and a second straight twenty win season will be paramount for the program. It would provide the ultimate stability for the program and prove to recruits, the AD, and most importantly the fans that Cuonzo Martin is the answer for Tennessee Basketball. If you are in year four and miss the tournament, it leaves as many questions as your first year to your ability to build a program. At that point, you must go in a new direction.
As of right now, I would say the program is solid. As of this moment, Cuonzo Martin is not on the hot seat. That is always good when evaluating a program. That obviously could change at the end of the season. Tennessee must make the tournament this year. I'm not sure if Cuonzo Martin would be fired if they somehow failed to make the tournament. However, I would definitely feel he should be. People are going to want NCAA Tournament wins, which is fine, but we can get to that if and when Tennessee gets there. There is no reason for Tennessee to be outside the top 25 this season before the NCAA Tournament. There is absolutely no reason for Tennessee to have less than twenty regular season wins. There is absolutely no reason for Tennessee to have a slow start. Only two players on this Tennessee roster were not signed by Coach Martin. This is Coach Martin's team, and he will tell you that. Cuonzo Martin must produce this season, and he will. We do not know Cuonzo Martin's ceiling as a coach, but I think we know his floor as a five year head coach. He's a decent enough coach to have a good team this season and not turn in an utter disgrace. Tennessee will do well and have a very good year. I feel like the program is doing well and is about to take that next step to get back to a top 25 program in the country. This year starts the ascent.
Today is the start of the 2013-2014 Tennessee Basketball season! It's been an incredibly long offseason, but that is the past. However, I feel like this is a good time to evaluate the program overall before our first game.
In order to evaluate a coach, you must start with what he took over. What kind of position was the program in? Then you evaluate what he has done. Tennessee just had its best six year run since the late 1970's under Bruce Pearl, but that sadly all came crashing down thanks to an NCAA investigation. Bruce was fired for lying to the NCAA. When you have a program under serious investigation, an athletic department hamstrung financially, and an AD that was on the hot seat, it is not a good time to find a basketball coach. Cuonzo Martin was hired as a high risk/high reward coach. He had good success at Missouri State, but had not made the NCAA Tournament and only been a head coach for three years. He had a month to recruit and to make the job even harder, he lost four starters and over 80% of his scoring going into 2011-2012. He had positives with the excellent renovations to TBA, a rejuvenated fan base, a great facility in Pratt Pavilion, and a national brand. But this was an uphill job from the beginning.
I felt like Coach Martin's first year was a success. With the signing of Memphis five star PF/C in Jarnell Stokes, and winning 19 games, which was the same amount the previous year while having to replace four starters, Cuonzo had a lot of momentum. The improvements of Trae Golden, Jeronne Maymon, and Jordan McRae, along with freshmen Jarnell Stokes and Josh Richardson, showed a coach who was really putting his stamp on the program. Tennessee was predicted to finish 11th out of 12 teams in the SEC. They ended up finishing tied 2nd in the conference. They rebounded from a 3-6 start to win 18 regular season games. The Vols fell short of the tournament thanks to a bad out of conference performance, but overall 19 wins was a very solid season. Things were looking bright on Rocky Top. It was almost a guarantee Cuonzo Martin was going to keep the tradition of successful Tennessee basketball.
Then Jeronne Maymon's knee stopped functioning properly. We don't know how or what, but it the best way to describe was a torpedo that hit the ship without it even setting sail yet, and not having a backup boat. Luckily, Jeronne is now 100% healthy and will play this season, but it was definitely a disaster. Tennessee would have made the tournament last year with a healthy Jeronne Maymon. Yet they still had a good amount of talent to make the tournament and didn't. Again, they had a great February to get back on the bubble in the tournament, but a horrible January with bad losses and absolute crap games at Georgia and Alabama in the SEC Tournament games were too much to overcome. The offense was stale, the defense was inconsistent, starting PG Trae Golden was injured and lost confidence, and Tennessee just could not guard well enough to win games. It was a disappointing season overall. We can argue that Tennessee should have been in the tournament all we want. However, they didn't get the job done, then was embarrassed at Thompson-Boling Arena in the NIT.
As a coach, Martin has had his positives. He does a very solid job prepping for big games. He's beaten Florida three times, beat Jim Calhoun, battled Coach K well, and took down John Calipari. He's shown great defensive game plans in multiple facets. He seems to be able to adjust during the game and has done well in conference play. His teams have had great February's. Cuonzo has beaten every coach in the SEC in only two years. His teams are excellent rebounding teams, maybe the best in the conference the last two years. He's done very well with player development also, with such players as Jordan McRae, Jeronne Maymon, and Josh Richardson There are negatives too however. His teams are very inconsistent on offense, especially in the half court. The offense has had too many lazy performances. He seemed to be too stubborn to play a half court game despite having athletes that can run. His defensive teams are not aggressive enough that they create turnovers and they have never protected the ball well. While he's had solid recruiting classes, he's only had two five star signees and not have that big top 15 class that would be really big for the program.
But as we said, that's the past. Cuonzo Martin not only has his most talented team, but his most experienced team going into 2013-2014. They are hungry to make their mark on the program. Cuonzo has changed his philosophy some this year, deciding to install a faster tempo for this team. The defense, which Cuonzo prides himself on, was disappointing last year and Cuonzo feels that there will be better consistency with such a veteran team. He returns four starters, plus brings in a new point guard, Antonio Barton, a senior transfer from The University of Memphis. He brought in his second five star player in Robert Hubbs III, who looks like he will be a dynamite player at Tennessee. His 2014 recruiting class lacks that big time player, but all four commitments are solid recruits with major conference scholarships across the country. It's possible Cuonzo Martin will have two players drafted after the 2014 season in Jarnell Stokes and Jordan McRae, which would be a huge lift for Tennessee's recruiting efforts. Despite not making the tournament for two years after six straight years of being in the Big Dance, the program looks good. Tennessee is in great shape to do big damage this season and should make the tournament with no problems. This is no bubble team. Most pundits have this team as a top 20-25 team for the season and I agree.
When you talk about the state of the program, you must address the future also. The 2013-2014 Tennessee team looks really good. I'm not sure you can debate that with the talent and experience of this team. We do not know the state of the program for the future. There is a lot of questions. Yes the 2013 class looks good on paper and even in their short exhibition games. Yes, every commit of the 2014 class has major conference offers and should be able to contribute from day one. Tennessee will lose three starters, and most likely lose their best player in Jarnell Stokes after the season. Tennessee will have seven freshmen and sophomores for 2014-2015. Tennessee will only have one top 50 former recruit on its roster for 2014-2015. This is where we will truly see if Cuonzo Martin is the answer for the program. I personally like what he has done with the 2013 and 2014 Tennessee recruiting classes. Yet, I have not seen them play one regular season minute. Can Cuonzo Martin develop his young players quickly enough to make back to back tourneys? It's the biggest question around the program in my mind. Making back to back tournaments and a second straight twenty win season will be paramount for the program. It would provide the ultimate stability for the program and prove to recruits, the AD, and most importantly the fans that Cuonzo Martin is the answer for Tennessee Basketball. If you are in year four and miss the tournament, it leaves as many questions as your first year to your ability to build a program. At that point, you must go in a new direction.
As of right now, I would say the program is solid. As of this moment, Cuonzo Martin is not on the hot seat. That is always good when evaluating a program. That obviously could change at the end of the season. Tennessee must make the tournament this year. I'm not sure if Cuonzo Martin would be fired if they somehow failed to make the tournament. However, I would definitely feel he should be. People are going to want NCAA Tournament wins, which is fine, but we can get to that if and when Tennessee gets there. There is no reason for Tennessee to be outside the top 25 this season before the NCAA Tournament. There is absolutely no reason for Tennessee to have less than twenty regular season wins. There is absolutely no reason for Tennessee to have a slow start. Only two players on this Tennessee roster were not signed by Coach Martin. This is Coach Martin's team, and he will tell you that. Cuonzo Martin must produce this season, and he will. We do not know Cuonzo Martin's ceiling as a coach, but I think we know his floor as a five year head coach. He's a decent enough coach to have a good team this season and not turn in an utter disgrace. Tennessee will do well and have a very good year. I feel like the program is doing well and is about to take that next step to get back to a top 25 program in the country. This year starts the ascent.
